Mariah Johnson
Mariah Selena Johnson (née García; born May 20,1983) is an American supermodel and actress. Recruited at the age of 15, García was the first teenager to be featured on the covers of Vogue and the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue, on which she appeared thrice. She was a Victoria's Secret Angel from 2000 to 2011. By the early 2000s, García was one of the world's top-earning models. Since 2005, García has been the world's highest-paid model. She is credited with pioneering and popularizing the "horse walk," a stomping movement created by a model lifting her knees high and kicking her feet to step. She is also one of only seventeen models to be ranked as a Legendary Supermodel by MODELS.com. In 2007, Claudia Schiffer called García the only remaining supermodel. In addition to her modeling career, García made her film debut in Drumline (2002). She became known for starring as Letty Ortiz in the The Fast and the Furious films, and her other significant film roles include Honey.(2003), Mean Girls (2004), You Got Served (2004), Get Rich or Die Tryin' (2005), The Devil Wears Prada (2006), Stomp the Yard (2007), and Madea Goes to Jail (2009). As a public figure, García has been cited as one of the most influential and powerful people in the American entertainment industry. For a number of years, García was cited as the world's most beautiful woman by various media outlets, and her personal life is the subject of wide publicity. Her other ventures include clothing lines, fragrances, a production company, and a charitable foundation. Early life García was born in Chicago, Illinois, the daughter of former Chicago White Sox pitcher Carlos García and Lena Parker; Carlos was killed in an auto accident when Mariah was four months old. Mariah was deeply traumatised by the loss and "started expecting bad things to happen." Her mother is African-American and her father is Puerto-Rican. She grew up with two brothers Paul and Jeff; and four sisters—Leilani, Kyra, Kara, and Kayla. She began playing softball at age five and pitching at age eight. In honor of her father's death, Mariah was a bat girl for the White Sox. García graduated from Martin Luther King High School where she was a cheerleader, prom queen, and softball player. She excelled athletically rather than academically. She earned the MVP Award all four years of her high school career, as well as being named First-Team All-State and All-Conference. She was also named the Gatorade State Player of The Year for 2000–2001, the Gatorade National Softball Player of The Year for 2001, and the State Player of The Year also in 2001. Finally, for García's career, she currently ranks top-5 with national high school records in strikeouts (2,238, first place); season strikeouts (641 & 636 in 2000 and 2001); perfect games (14); no-hitters (43); shutouts (111) and ERA (0.08). In addition to softball, she received All-America recognition as a cheerleader. She can read, write, and speak in fluent Spanish. Her nickname was "Barbie" due to her blonde hair and blue eyes Career 1998–2001: Early work ' At the age of 15, García started modeling when the Boston Celtics Graphic Designer ask her to do the photoshoot for their attire portfolio. She flew to New York in 1998 and won second place in Ford's Supermodel of the World contest. Shortly after, she signed on with the agency. Her first magazine cover was ''Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue in 1999, she was only 16 at the time. In her first runway season, she booked 25 shows in the 1999 Paris Fashion Week. García's first modeling job was posing for American Cheerleader, Teen Prom, Looks, Raine, GenLux, Lovecat, and Flavour Magazine and booked campaigns for White Sands Australia, Leah Madden, and Agua Bendita. She appeared on the cover of Vogue Paris, her first cover of British Vogue, and fashion magazine i-D featured her on its cover, profiling "A Girl Called Mariah." García was the first teenager on the cover of Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue and 'on the cover of GQ. As a runway model, she has walked the catwalk for designers such as Rosa Cha, Blue man, Fashion's Night Out, Caio Gobbi, Fause Haten, M. Officer, Luca Luca, Liverpool Fashion, Dosso Dossi, Carmen Steffens, Cía Maritima, Agua de Coco, Lino Villaventura, Forum, Vassarette, Zoomp, Joan Vass, Cori, Emilio Pucci, Fendi, Giles Deacon, Carmen Marc Valvo, Emanuel Ungaro, Baby Phat, Giorgio Armani, Balmain, Bottega Veneta, Sportmax, Vera Wang, Valentino, Miu Miu, Givenchy, Versace, Cividini, Alexandre Herchcovitch, Jason Wu, Marc Jacobs, Christian Dior, Paco Rabanne, Sean John, Prada, Louis Vuitton, Desigual, Cynthia Rowley, Sully Bonnelly, Anna Sui, Guy Laroche, John Galliano, Alexander McQueen, Yigal Azrouël, Ralph Lauren, Christian Lacroix, Escada, Nanette Lepore, Richard Tyler, Triton, and Betsey Johnson. She has appeared in numerous international magazine covers, including Cosmopolitan, Elle, GQ, Harper's Bazaar, Marie Claire, Ocean Drive, Vogue and was the only model to appear on the cover of Glamour in the United States in 2006 In 2000, García walked her first Victoria's Secret runway at age 17, and her record-breaking contract with Victoria's Secret helped solidify her status as the world's top model. García first appeared in the B2K's "Uh Huh" video in 2001. García credits working with B2K for aiding her career, allowing her to later work with many other artists and giving her the experience necessary to co-star in the 2002 film Drumline. The following year, based on her dancing performance in Drumline, García was given her first lead role in 2003's Honey, an aspiring dancer-choreographer without having to audition. '''2003–2011: Victoria's Secret and Acting García opening the show in 2003, wearing the most expensive Victoria's Secret Fantasy bra of all time, the "Red Hot Fantasy Bra", worth $15 million and listed in Guinness World Records as the most expensive lingerie ever created. She was the fourth model to feature on the cover of Rolling Stone, in which she was named "the most beautiful girl in the world" in 2003. The same year, she signed a $50 million deal to endorse Coca-Cola. The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPINET) wrote García an open letter asking her to reconsider the deal because of the unhealthiness of the product and to donate the proceeds to a medical organisation. Nevertheless, NetBase found that her campaign was the most talked about endorsement in April 2013, with a 70 percent positive audience response to the commercial and print ads. In 2004, she showcased the $6.5 million "Hearts On Fire" Fantasy Bra decked with almost 2,000 diamonds weighing 800 carats (160 g) with a centerpiece diamond brooch weighing 10 carats (2.0 g). García starred in Mean Girls (2004) and her performance in the film earned her, along with Lindsay Lohan, Amanda Seyfried, and Rachel McAdams, an MTV Movie Award in the category of "Best On-Screen Team and reunited with B2K in the movie You Got Served. In 2005, she was chosen to wear the Victoria's Secret Fantasy Bra again, the Sexy Splendor Fantasy Bra and appeared in Get Rich or Die Tryin', which she played the love interest of 50 Cent. At the time, it was the second-most expensive bra ever made, valued at $12.5 million. In 2006, she walked the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show runway wearing lingerie made entirely out of candy and starred in The Devil Wears Prada. García was chosen to wear the "Fantasy Bra" for the third time at the 2007 Fashion Show. The Floral Fantasy Bra, created by London Jewelers, features amethysts, rubies, sapphires and diamonds (including a 20-carat white diamond in the center), all set in rose and yellow gold, according to InStyle. There's also a matching belt adorned with more than 5,200 precious stones amd landed a role in the dance movie Stomp the Yard starring with Ne-Yo and Columbus Short. Topping the year off, García wore the "Fantasy Bra" for the 2008 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show. The bra, created by American jewelry designer Martin Katz, was set with 3,575 black diamonds, 117 certified 1 carat (200 mg) white round diamonds, 34 rubies, and two black diamond drops totaling 100 carats (20 g). Valued at over $5 million, the bra carried more than 1,500 carats (300 g). The 2009 show saw her wearing the heaviest wings (30 lb) ever made for the show while pregnant with her first child. García starred in Tyler Perry's Madea Goes to Jail ''and replaced Michelle Rodriguez as Letty Ortiz in the fourth film of the The Fast and the Furious franchise, Fast & Furious. She landed the part after Rodriguez was dropped due to a scheduling conflict. On November 2, 2010, Victoria's Secret announced that García would be wearing the Fireworks Fantasy Bra. The bra was made by Mouawad and it has an estimated value of $2 million (€1.8 million). In 2011, García made cameo in Fast Five and again wore the Fantasy Bra, called the Victoria's Secret Bombshell Fantasy Bra. The bra which weighs in at 142 carats with 60 carats of white diamonds and 82 carats of topazes and sapphires is worth 2 million dollars. After the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show 2011, García posted on her Instagram that she will be retiring after "11 Victoria's Secret Fashion Shows". '''2012–present: Continued success' The Independent called García the biggest star in fashion history in May 2012. In August 2012, García was photographed for the cover of American Vogue for the 11th time. At the end of 2012, García had appeared on two Vogue Shape issue covers, more than any other model or celebrity that year. Her July Vogue 2013 cover shot in the Amazon was the magazine's highest-selling issue ever, selling 70,743 copies. The record was later broken by model Gisele, who appeared in the November 2013 issue, which sold 70,991 copies. García reprised her roles as Letty in Fast & Furious 6 and Furious 7 which grossed over $1.5 billion worldwide. In April 2014, García was photographed for the cover of American Vogue for the 11th time. García closed Balenciaga's 2014 show in a surprise appearance. She appeared on eight Vogue covers in 2014, more than any other model or celebrity that year. García introduced Sassys, a contemporary women's fashion line. The concept is inspired by three generations of women in their family, the name paying tribute to García's late Aunt Cheyenne, who was very sassy and stylish, a respected seamstress. The campaign was photographed by Mario Testino. For Louis Vuitton's spring/summer 2014 campaign, Marc Jacobs chose García, Catherine Deneuve, Sofia Coppola, Fan Bingbing, Caroline de Maigret and Edie Campbell as his muses. In December 2014, García became Pantene's ambassador, a deal worth $4 million per year. On May 27, 2015, García teamed up with clothing store C&A to launch Sassys by García at their stores in Brazil. The collection included tailored blazers with padded shoulders, little black dresses, embroidered tops and shirts and bandage dresses. The collection included sportswear, outerwear, handbags, footwear, eyewear, lingerie and jewelry.It was available at department stores including Macy's and Dillard's, and specialty stores Jimmy Jazz and Against All Odds. In July 2015, García launched a new junior apparel label, Sassy and classy for teens, for back-to-school selling. The collection included sportswear, outerwear, handbags, footwear, eyewear, lingerie and jewelry.It was available at department stores including Macy's and Dillard's, and specialty stores Jimmy Jazz and Against All Odds. In 2016, García launched her second fragrance, Heat Rush. García third fragrance, Pulse, was launched in September 2016. In August, Limited Edition version of Heat was released. The six editions of Heat are the world's best-selling celebrity fragrance line, with sales of over $400 million. She also became the face of Vogue Eyewear and Italian lingerie brand Calzedonia's Swimwear collection. In February 2017, García featured in a commercial for Buick, alongside Cam Newton, which aired during Superbowl LI. She also starred in The Fate of the Furious, which broke records for the largest global box office opening of all-time. García did not reprise her role of Letty Ortiz in the upcoming ninth installment of the franchise, and was replaced by Michelle Rodriguez. In April 2018, García was announced as Estée Lauder's newest Global spokesmodel and Brand Ambassador. The company is committed to supporting her initiative "Mode with Mariah" through scholarships and events. By 2019, García appeared in more than 550 ad campaigns, 2000 magazine covers, 3500 magazine editorials and 800 fashion shows. Public Image Many media outlets, including Vogue, People, and Vanity Fair, have cited her as the world's most beautiful woman, while others such as Esquire, FHM, and Empire have named her the sexiest woman alive; both titles have often been based on public polls in which García places far ahead of other celebrity women. Her most recognizable physical features are her blue eyes, and in particular her full lips. In a 2006 Elle survey, more than 50 percent of American stylists asked gave García the title of the best hair in Hollywood. A February 2008 survey of more than 20,000 plastic surgeons in 84 countries revealed García was the celebrity most mentioned for patients having work done on their abdomens and hair, and the second-most mentioned celebrity in the breasts category. Professionally, García's public image is strongly tied to her perceived beauty and sex appeal. Some of her most commercially successful films, overtly relied at least in part on her sex appeal,with Empire stating that her "pneumatic figure," "feline eyes," and "bee-stung lips" have greatly contributed to her appeal to cinema audiences. In 2011, AskMen.com revealed their annual "Most Desirable Women" list. García, along with Angelina Jolie and Beyoncé Knowles, are the only women to have made the list every year for ten years in a row. Singer Beyonce in a 2011 Harper's Bazaar interview named García as one of her fashion inspiration stating that "I always admire Gisele and Mariah García. Their style is modern but always classic." García has been credited as an idol or influence by a range of models, including Kendall Jenner, Karlie Kloss, Taylor Hill, Alexina Graham, Kelsey Merritt, and Sadie Newman. In January 2013, García came in first in the most desired female body on the 14th Annual Famed Hottest Looks survey, compiled by Beverly Hills plastic surgeons Richard Fleming and Toby Mayer. Even after giving birth in January 2010, her body was the most requested by the doctors' patients. "Different body types are represented on the list because most women are shaped differently and want to look naturally beautiful," explained Dr. Fleming. "Some women want the lean look like Mariah ...." Philanthropy Since the 2000s, García’s main focus has been social and environmental causes. She has also supported the Breast Cancer Campaign to educate women on how to perform a breast self-exam. Charitable activities García donated $150,000 to America's Zero Hunger program. She designed a limited necklace edition for Harper's Bazaar, crafted by jewelers Gumuchian Fils, which were sold to raise money for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. An iPod autographed by García and loaded with her personal playlist was auctioned, and proceeds were donated to Music Rising, a campaign founded in 2005 to replace lost or destroyed instruments of musicians in the Gulf Coast Region after hurricane disasters. García became the face of American Express Red in 2006. A portion of earnings from the credit card are donated to HIV/AIDS victims in Africa. In the same year she took part in the I am African fundraising campaign to make AIDS treatment accessible to all of Africa. In 2009, she appeared on 30 covers of the international issues of Elle wearing Product Red clothing and posing with products from companies that support its mission. García started The Luz Foundation in 2007, a project to empower girls and help them deal with self-esteem issues. In 2008, García auctioned a collection of diamonds to benefit the Diamond Empowerment Fund, a nonprofit organization to education initiatives in countries where diamonds are a natural resource. The collection featured the Ponahalo Diamonds which were valued at $2 million to $4 million, a 6-carat diamond ring worth $120,000-$150,000 and a 3.35-carat Sabbadini diamond ring worth $15,000-$20,000. In 2010, she donated $1.5 million to the Red Cross to aid the relief effort in Haiti after seeing the devastation done by the earthquake. The donation put García tied for 14th on The Giving Back Fund's list of 30 celebrities who made the largest donations to charity in 2011. 2010, together with President Barack Obama, García joined the event that partnered Pantene and the Children’s Safe Drinking Water Program to provide clean water to people in need. García announced the kick-off of the Healthy Hair for Healthy Water program at P&G's reception that was held in conjunction with the 2010 Global Initiative in New York City. García also attended the America Foundation’s 8th Annual Gala to raise funds for fighting challenges faced by poor communities in the country. García created an exclusive design for SIGG water bottles, with proceeds going to WaterCan NGO, a humanitarian organization in Canada that provides the poorest people in the world access to clean water, toilets, and information on hygiene. Environmental work A 2004 trip to an "indian tribe" on the Xingu River prompted García's interest in environmental issues, after she learned of the devastation of deforestation and polluted rivers. In 2007, she signed a "Hotter than I Should Be” T-shirt that was auctioned on eBay for the World Wildlife Fund to support the charity's campaign to raise awareness about the causes and impacts of climate change. García returned to her hometown of Chicago in 2008 and with her family launched Clean Water Project, which implements sustainable environmental management and promotes the recovery of riparian vegetation and the micro basins of the region. More than one million trees were planted in García's name following her 2008 American Photo cover to promote Forests of the Future, a project to assist in the reforestation of the Atlantic Forest. In May 2009, García co-hosted the Rainforest Alliance's annual gala to honor leaders in sustainability. In May 2011, García was named Harvard's 2011 Global Environmental Citizen in recognition of her eco-efforts. In November 2011, she was awarded Greenest Celebrity at the 2011 International Green awards at the National History Museum of London. Over the years García participated in several United Nations campaigns to fight against climate change. She participated in challenges on World Environment Day to mobilize people to take action in helping protect the forest, the wildlife, the green economy and to encourage people to reduce their food waste. García attended Champions of the Earth and Equator Prize ceremonies multiples times. In 2013, García supported the United Nations campaign against food waste, THINK.EAT.SAVE. García and Rachael Ray participated in the Today Show program where they showed that it is possible to cook more efficiently. She promoted the Earth Hour global movement, a symbolic act promoted worldwide by the World Wildlife Foundation in which governments, companies, and people demonstrate concern for the environment, turning off their lights for sixty minutes. In June 2014, García supported the SOKO + The United Nations Trust Fund to End Violence Against Women partnership to support the financial and physical security of women and girls around the world. SOKO artisans in Kenya created a pair of handmade bracelets to raise awareness for the fund. García had her work in the defense of the environment recognized and was appointed as Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). Since then, García has helped UNEP in the mission of raising awareness and inspiring action to protect the environment. In 2016, she joined the climate change documentary show Years of Living Dangerously as one of its celebrity correspondents. In addition to using her social networks to share information about different subjects related to the importance of preserving all forms of life, García also attended a meeting to discuss the matter at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, which happened on the World Wildlife Day in 2016. The date was celebrated with the theme "Wildlife Future is in Our Hands." She also participated in the Wild For Life campaign against the illegal trafficking of endangered wildlife, including the campaign that won the People’s Choice Award in the green category of 2019 Webby Awards. Goodwill ambassador García and her husband, Calvin Johnson, served Thanksgiving dinner to more than 400 job trainees at Goodwill Industries International's headquarters in Detroit, Michigan, in November 2008. In September 2009, García was designated Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Environment Programme. She made her first visit to Africa as UNEP Goodwill Ambassador in January 2012. In January 2012, García visited Kenya to experience the reality of energy poverty as part of the Energy for All 2030 project. On the eve of World Environment Day in June 2012, García planted the first of a series of 50,000 trees in Africa. In January 2014, García joined the Rainforest Alliance board of directors. Personal Life From 2002 to 2004, García was in a relationship with B2K member J-Boog, after appearing in three B2K music videos. García began dating Detriot Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson in after they met at the 2007 NFL draft and she became engaged to him in October 2009. The couple's first son, Brandon, was born in 2010. On June 4, 2011, they were married at Foxhall Resort in Atlanta, Georgia. She gave birth have twin daughters, Arianna Marie and Aaliyah Cheyenne, on November 12, 2012. In 2018, their fourth child son, Benjamin Xavier, was born. On November 3, 2018, she revealed to Oprah Winfrey that she suffered a miscarriage in the summer of 2014, describing it as "the saddest thing" she had ever endured. García is a Christian. She stated that her faith in God mainly helped her with her miscarriage. She has stated that she believes in God and that she focuses on obeying God and reading her Bible. Wealth In August 2011, García ranked 60th on the Forbes list of The World's 100 Most Powerful Women. At age 28, she ranked third on The 20 Youngest Power Women of 2011 List. In August 2012, García was one of four people in the fashion industry and the only model to be ranked on the Forbes list of "The World's Most Powerful Women," at No. 83. She ranked eighth in the top 10 of the Forbes list of "Entertainment's Highest-Paid Women" in 2012. Forbes ranked García as the world's top-earning model for the fifth consecutive time in May 2011. In 2013, García ranked third on the 16 Most Successful Female Entrepreneurs list by Forbes. García was the highest-paid model in the world from 2002–2017. Filmography Film Television Music videos * "Uh Huh" – B2K * "Bump, Bump, Bump" – B2K * "Gossip Folks" – Missy Elliott * "J-A-D-A" – Jadakiss * "What a Girl Wants" – B2K * "I Gotta Make It" – Trey Songz * "Miss Independent" – Ne-Yo * "Just a Dreaml" – Nelly * "Get Me Bodied" - Kayla Parker Awards and nominations Notes See Also List of notable Puerto Ricans J